I set this up in ten minutes. The color is almost black, like a 90% cacao chocolate bar. The shade is a nice burlap-looking fabric. My only complaint is that the height of the lamp itself is not adjustable. In an ordinary arm chair, the lamp is right above my head so I can feel the heat of the bulb. I am only 5' 3'', so this is a pretty short lamp.

Pros: Looks great, easy to set up
Cons: Height is not adjustable